NIMBYs exercise extraordinary power
Your rights are up for negotiation, even when you’re following the letter of the law.
Democracy is ganging up to vote people off the street. It sounds harsh but that’s what happens when development and rezoning proposals go through a period of public review and a popularity contest.
Property rights are routinely put to a vote. Neighbors get to decide what the new guy has to do (or not do). Very few people jump at the idea of increased density next door or across the street. That’s just the way it is. Asking for a show of hands will not deliver compact, sustainable development. “Converting a single family house into a duplex? Not in my backyard!”
You’re a homeowner and you’re planning to modify your private property. You’re just one person who has an opportunity to build generational wealth by creating a rental property out of a portion of the house you bought.
Your plan meets all the site requirements for material, height, access, etc.
You’re following all the development rules and you even (shockingly!) conform to the local zoning rules.
Your neighbors don’t like your plan.
The reality for most of us is that neighbors have the power to squash home improvement plans. Your rights are constantly up for negotiation, even when you’re following the letter of the law. If someone influential doesn’t like you or your ideas, the public review process lets them prevent you from earning rental income.
The attacks on property rights are happening all over the country all the time. You might call the opponents NIMBYs, you might call them entitled and privileged, or you might just call them control freaks. Neighbors from all walks of life should have every right to speak about their distaste for housing abundance or their fear of change. They should have no right to dictate how and where other people live. But that’s exactly what the typical development and rezoning process promotes.
Once you start looking for stories about preserving the status quo, you’ll see them everywhere. An AI chatbot could generate most of the quotes:
Neighbors fight development in Virginia. “With nearly 500 responses, 81.5 percent of respondents in our survey said they do not support the Zoning for Housing proposal.”
Neighbors fight development in Arizona. “We’re pricing out teachers. We’re pricing out the people that work in our community. It’s a huge concern.”
Neighbors fight development in Indiana. “A set of 48 rowhouses drew criticism from some area homeowners who are afraid the development will devalue their properties and cause unsustainable population density and traffic issues. Some residents were also concerned about safety for area children.”
Neighbors fight development in Rhode Island. “There is already a problem with traffic. This is making me sick to my stomach.”
Neighbors fight development in Hawaii. “It's not like we don't have open hearts or we don't want affordable housing. It needs to be responsible development.”
Neighbors fight development in Texas. “There are already plenty of potholes present on the small, two-lane road and a surge of new residents would make the problem much worse.”
Neighbors fight development in Illinois. “The site was formerly an unpaved parking lot and a print shop, both of which could have left harmful chemicals in the soil.”
It is maddening! I once worked to open a much-needed preschool in an Oakland neighborhood. A retired lady owns a great property right across from an elementary school and right at a highway exit for easy access. NIMBYs fought the project and no matter what accommodations we offered they couldn’t be satisfied. The project fell through. Families were out of luck and stuck on long waitlists for preschools and the old lady could not access the value of her property to fund her retirement.